1. Field of the Invention.
The invention relates in general to manually operated electromechanical switches of the type used in automobiles to operate the turn signals and change the headlight beams, and more particularly, to such a switch that is momentary and which will not develop looseness even when relatively large lever arms and the relatively large resulting forces associated therein with are applied to the switch.
2. Description of the Prior Art.
Electromechanical switches that are used in automobiles to operate turn signals and change the headlight beams are well-known in the art. It is also known to use momentary type switches, that immediately return to the neutral position, for lane change indication switch functions and beam change functions. However, with respect to the turn signal functions, most if not all of such switches in the prior art are of the latching type, which latch until the steering wheel is released and then unlatch and return to the neutral position. The present invention relates to a momentary turn signal initiation switch that immediately returns to the neutral position after activation. A separate mechanism turns off the turn signals when the wheel returns, or after a predetermined time period, which separate mechanism is not a part of the present invention.
The shaft used to manually operate a turn signal or change the headlight beams is generally relatively long compared to other manually operated switches involving similar power loads. Thus relatively large leverage is applied which can result in relatively large forces on the switch parts. However, heavy switch parts not only are not economical, but also can lead to heavy wear on switch parts. Further, any looseness that is present in the switch mechanism will be greatly multiplied at the end of the lever arm. Thus a switch design which prevents looseness from developing in the operating mechanism would be very useful in such switches.